Decreasing your Appetite
Help for appetite control and suppressing hunger.
Select a Topic
- What does Decreasing your Appetite mean?
- Should you be Decreasing your Appetite?
- How to Decrease your Appetite
What does Decreasing your Appetite mean?
Losing weight is not an easy task. People who are struggling with weight loss may have an overactive appetite that causes them to eat more than the body requires. It’s normal to feel hungry, but sometimes the body sends you signals to eat when you’re not actually hungry. These food cravings can lead to gaining weight.
The idea of “controlling your appetite” may seem overwhelming. You might wonder if it will feel like deprivation or starvation. Rest assured, appetite control and weight loss don’t have to mean going hungry. On the contrary, many foods that promote a healthy appetite are filling, delicious and nutritious.
Should you be Decreasing your Appetite?
Pharmaceutical appetite suppressants, or “diet pills,” were once popular choices for quick weight loss. Their appeal is waning as research shows the dangerous side-effects of these medications. Side-effects include addiction, fatigue, irritability, sleep disturbances, heart palpitations, stomach pain, blurred vision, anxiety, impotence and more.
Although the FDA has approved some prescription appetite suppressants, studies show the benefits of conventional appetite suppressants are only short-term. They don’t address the underlying causes or problems associated with obesity or being overweight. People generally start gaining weight again when the medication is stopped, and body metabolism is thrown out of a natural rhythm. Doctors are generally hesitant to prescribe these for strong appetite control and tend to do so only if other measures have failed.
Natural dietary supplements offer an alternative for supporting appetite reduction and weight loss without dangerous side effects.
How to Decrease your Appetite
Decreasing appetite should start with changing the way you think about food and eating. Focus on food as fuel for your body. The goal is feeling full while eating healthy, nutritious food that nourishes your body.
Some people who feel like they have an insatiable hunger actually suffer from a lack of vitamins and minerals due to an unhealthy lifestyle. These nutritional deficiencies can lead to food cravings, overeating and weight gain. If you eat junk food you may feel full at first, but you’ll feel hungry again soon after the meal because you ate “empty calories” without enough essential nutrients. The vicious cycle repeats itself.
When excessive food intake is caused by emotional problems such as anxiety and depression, treating the underlying condition often helps to decrease the desire to eat.
Tips for decreasing your appetite:
- Drink plenty of water. Aim to drink at least 8 glasses of water a day and drink water at every meal. Drinking water hydrates and body and makes it easier for your digestive system to function properly.
- Eat plenty of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, legumes, fish and poultry in small portions. Healthy food choices help the stomach feel fuller, reduce hunger and help keep blood sugar balanced.
- Eat plenty of protein and healthy fats.
- Eat plenty of dietary fiber or consider a fiber supplement. Fiber doesn’t break down like other foods, so it slows down digestion. Slower digestion helps you feel fuller longer.
- Limit sugar, alcohol, salt and refined white flour products such as pasta.
- Drink green tea. Green tea contains caffeine and catechins. Caffeine is a stimulant that increases fat burning and suppresses appetite. Catechins have been shown to boost metabolism and reduce fat.
- Drink yerba mate tea. Yerba mate is a plant shown to increase leptin and glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) levels, which may increase feelings of fullness and decrease appetite.
- Try a safe, natural weight loss supplement without dangerous side effects. Natural dietary supplements for appetite control and healthy weight loss include AppetiteGo™ for Appetite Control and EcoSlim™ for Balanced Metabolism
- Semeco, Arlene. “10 Natural Appetite Suppressants That Help You Lose Weight” Healthline. Accessed October 2, 2019. https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/10-natural-appetite-suppressants
- “Appetite Suppressants: What You Should Know.” WebMD. Accessed October 2, 2019. https://www.webmd.com/diet/appetite-suppressants#1
- Smith, Amy. “Ten Natural Ways to Suppress Appetite.” Medical News Today. Accessed October 2, 2019. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/320625.php
- Magee, Elaine. “Top 10 Ways to Deal with Hunger.” WebMD. Accessed October 2, 2019. https://www.webmd.com/diet/features/top-10-ways-to-deal-with-hunger#1
- Petrie, Alina. “18 Science-Based Ways to Reduce Hunger and Appetite.” Healthline. Accessed October 2, 2019.
- “Weight Control.” U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health. Accessed October 2, 2019. https://nccih.nih.gov/health/weightcontrol
- “Why the FDA Banned Ephedra.” Harvard Health Publishing Harvard Medical School. Accessed October 2, 2019. https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/ephedra-ban